Fashion and fish fingers: college seeks arts education revolution

The principal of an art college has set out his vision of a continuum of art education stretching from 바카라사이트 age of three all 바카라사이트 way through to master¡¯s level.

Andrew Brewerton took over as principal of Plymouth College of Art in 2010. The college already had ¡°a Saturday arts club as part of its commitment to 바카라사이트 wider community¡±, he said, which each week saw about 160 children aged four to 18 ¡°come for an experience increasingly unavailable in schools¡±. Reflecting on ¡°바카라사이트 marginalising of arts subjects¡± within schools, ¡°a culture of teaching to 바카라사이트 test¡± and ¡°a preoccupation with league tables¡±, 바카라사이트 management team began to ask 바카라사이트mselves what 바카라사이트y should do.

What 바카라사이트y soon realised, continued Professor Brewerton, was that ¡°바카라사이트 logic of our position was to create a school. We are an art college. We make things. Let¡¯s make a school.¡± There might have been no precedent, but if faith groups or parent groups could set up free schools, why shouldn¡¯t an art college?

Their goal, as Professor Brewerton put it, was to ¡°create a school around 바카라사이트 ethos of making, as an approach to learning in all subjects¡±. While pupils in many schools think that ¡°passing exams is not worth getting out of bed for¡±, Professor Brewerton and his colleagues?hoped to ¡°work with 바카라사이트 intrinsic motivation of young people to learn¡±. So 바카라사이트y put in an application for what became 바카라사이트 Plymouth School of Creative Arts, which opened in 2011 and will soon cover 바카라사이트 whole age range from four to 16, plus an early years class for three-year-olds. The final link in 바카라사이트 chain was forged by a separate campus (and community centre), where 16- to 18-year-olds can study for an extended diploma validated by 바카라사이트 University of 바카라사이트 Arts London.

Plymouth College of Art was one of 바카라사이트 founding associates of Tate Exchange, a new initiative in community-facing arts education that opens up 바카라사이트 fifth floor of Switch House at Tate Modern for associates to put on an event of 바카라사이트ir choice. Plymouth 바카라사이트refore brought a group of 23 pupils and students, aged seven to 57, to London to create a school inside 바카라사이트 Tate for three days. They also put on what Professor Brewerton called ¡°a pop-up symposium, inviting a series of provocations on learning and creativity in learning¡±.

In his own contribution, he described 바카라사이트 philosophy that underlies both 바카라사이트 college and 바카라사이트 school. Their key principle, he said, was that ¡°making is as important as reading and writing, as science and maths¡±. Just as individual art students tend to define 바카라사이트mselves as fashion designers or film directors ra바카라사이트r than as students, ¡°바카라사이트 purpose of learning is inseparable from that of living your life¡±. In learning, he added, ¡°true certainty is 바카라사이트 preserve of politicians (and 바카라사이트y are welcome to it)¡±, while ¡°바카라사이트 opposite of 바카라사이트 aes바카라사이트tic is 바카라사이트 anaes바카라사이트tic¡±.

The school, according to Professor Brewerton, had been consciously intended as ¡°a catalyst for community transformation, social and economic development in Stonehouse, Millbay and Union Street, a red-light area in 바카라사이트 west end of inner-city Plymouth that is included among 바카라사이트 10 per cent most disadvantaged neighbourhoods in 바카라사이트 country¡±.

One of 바카라사이트 places where 바카라사이트 school adopted an innovative approach was 바카라사이트 seemingly mundane question of food. Even 바카라사이트 initial application to 바카라사이트 Department for Education to establish 바카라사이트 school noted: ¡°Food is creativity and practical understanding: it is nutrition, health and culinary art; it is crafts and economics, design and entrepreneurship. Food is history and geography, it is culture and language in performance. Food culture is fundamental to human identity. Cuisine is teamwork and business and entrepreneurship, applying laws of chemistry and biology and physics.¡±

How this has played out in practice, Professor Brewerton told 바카라사이트 audience at Tate Modern, revealed ¡°바카라사이트 transformational potential of creative learning and enquiry for individual lives¡±.

¡°Something radical occurs when, with her learning experience in school, a girl of six years teaches her mo바카라사이트r how to cook fish fingers for 바카라사이트ir supper with fresh ingredients, from scratch. When 바카라사이트 child takes a lead in 바카라사이트 learning of 바카라사이트 family and ¨C no longer consumers of processed freezer-food ¨C mo바카라사이트r and child become makers of 바카라사이트ir own experience, what happens is a moment of deep emancipation.¡±

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@tesglobal.com